paul flannery

Celtics Countdown, No. 3: Ray's return

We’re counting down the 10 most important developments of the offseason. No. 3: The Celtics re-sign Ray Allen
It was just after the All-Star break, the passing of the trade deadline and a west coast trip when the question was put to Ray Allen about everything that had been swirling around him.
He had been the subject of trade rumors from the middle of the winter, which coincided with the Celtics slump and a marked downturn in Allen’s shooting percentage. He was also in the final year of a huge contract and his salary-slot seemed like a tempting way to jumpstart the inevitable transition to a new era.
But as the deadline passed with no deal, Allen began to look like Ray Allen again. He made 37 of 57 shots over a four-game span immediately after the deadline, and so the question was posed as to whether this had any affect on him.
“I think it coincides with the trade deadline,” he said, noting the difference. “Honestly I thought the trade deadline was [a few days later]. It didn’t matter to me.”
Whether it affected him or not, Danny Ainge’s decision to keep the team together and make one more run hinged entirely on whether to keep Allen. When Ainge didn’t make a move, he set the course for the team’s immediate prospects.
It wasn’t until the playoff run, however, when the future began to present itself. True, in a gamble-for-the-ages scenario, Ainge could have renounced all the free agents and made a play for the big prizes. But in a realistic maneuver, Ainge elected to play the hand he was dealt and add on at the margins.
That meant a number of things, but it absolutely required re-signing Allen. Beyond being one of the great shooters the game has ever seen, it’s a proven analytical fact that the Celtics play better when Allen is on the floor. That’s one area where numbers and observations match up nicely.
We can see that his shooting ability is extremely valuable to the Celtics offense as well as the motion that he provides by constantly running off screens and the numbers tell us how much. Ainge has said in the past that the team values Allen’s contributions perhaps more than anyone else would for exactly those reasons.
But re-signing Allen was not that easy. Now freed from the confines of his contract, he was very much a wanted man in the summer of 2010.
His name popped up with the Knicks early in the process, but it was the interest being shown by LeBron James and the Miami Heat that had to be the most tempting. When Paul Pierce re-sign quickly, the prevailing thought was that Allen’s deal would take a while.
Only it didn’t. Just a day into the start of free-agency, Allen re-signed for a deal that was about as close to perfect for both sides as one could hope: two years, with a player option, for $10 million annually.
The salary reflects that Allen, while still a very good player, is no longer in the max-contract range, while the length is appropriately short.
The player option also gives Allen something he didn’t have last year: control. For a player who obsessively craves normalcy, that’s no small consideration.
Finally, Allen’s deal tipped off the direction that Ainge was taking with this window of opportunity: two years, which is also the time Kevin Garnett has remaining on his current deal. (Unless there’s a lockout, but that’s a whole other issue).
Bringing back Allen completed the first step of Ainge’s offseason blueprint and signaled that yes, the Celtics would be returning for one more run. Up next: Paul Pierce’s new contract reinforces his place in the Celtics hierarchy.

Greg and Chris talk with Mike Reiss from ESPN Boston in hour 2 of NFL Sunday to discuss a variety of offseason happenings with the Pats and throughout the league. Greg and Chris also get into the NFL Draft and where Mariota and Winston will go.

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Flannery joins Mut to break down the Isaiah Thomas trade to Boston and what it means for the Celtics this season and in the future. Paul also chats with Mut about the other deals that happened at the NBA's trading deadline

Mut, Tomase, and Bradford kick things off talking about Shane Victorino taking offense to people reading into some comments he made about trading for Cole Hamels. They also discuss Blake Swihart and how soon he could be up if Christian Vazquez starts the season on the DL.

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It's a big hour #2 for the Sunday Skate dudes - they talk about the B's defenseman and what the future looks like at that position, with both moves the team can make and younger guys in the AHL. They also get into the Bruins philosophy on bringing guys up and sending them back down and how players deal with that. Finally, the boys are joined by Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli to discuss EVERYTHING.

The Sunday Skate crew gets the show going discussing the Bruins big, impressive victory over the NY Rangers yesterday. What can you take from that game? According to LB - Lyndon Byers - who called the guys from the road, not a lot. LB drops a dime on what was going on with the Rangers yesterday. DJ and Joe discuss Claude's lines and groupings and the importance of Ryan Spooner. They also get into Lucic, his contributions this year and if he can turn things around.

Wrestlemania was a trial run for Super Bowl 50. More Christian dog stuff. Superintendent in Chief William Gross of the BPD deals with some idiotic protesters after the fatal shooting in Roxbury on Friday night.

Shawn Thornton is now a member of the Panthers, who come to town tomorrow night. Thornton spoke about Claude Julien's control of the Bruins locker room, and his own team playing his former team on Tuesday night.